


All These Lullabies

by sassbuttcas



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - High School, Destiel - Freeform, Human Castiel, M/M, Mechanic Dean Winchester, Musician Dean Winchester, Nerd Castiel, Painter Castiel, Young Castiel, Young Dean Winchester, Young Sam Winchester
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-23
Updated: 2014-03-13
Packaged: 2017-12-24 10:42:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/939028
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sassbuttcas/pseuds/sassbuttcas
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Throughout this story, we will see the growing relationship of two young men who go through multiple hardships and still manage to find each other through the rain and storm clouds.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. With No More Tears

_"Squeaky swings and tall grass_  
 _The longest shadows ever cast_  
 _The water's warm and children swim_  
 _And we frolicked about in our summer skin"_  
 _-'Summer Skin' by Death Cab for Cutie_

It's safe to assume that the boy with the blue eyes was bored out of his wits. The summer had barely started and he already had nothing to do and nowhere to go. His friend Anna had started her backpacking trip across Europe that she had always wanted to do when they graduated. He had helped her pick out landmarks to see and helped her budget her money while she would be away. They were the best of friends. They had live together ever since his mom kicked him out at the age of 16. Anna took him in immediately and told him she wouldn't bring it up as long as he agreed to let her help him. It was the least she could do after he saved her from her abusive father many years back. They lived in a simple grey-bricked townhouse in a quiet complex a few blocks from their high school, of which they just graduated from that June. Luckily, this was also a few more blocks away from the local university they were both accepted into to start that September. But that was a long time away. Or so it felt as the boy sat on his bed and listened to the music pouring out of his headphones. He hummed along with the tune, singing along with the chorus when it came along.  
"There will come a time, you'll see," He sang, "with no more tears. And love will not break your heart, but dismiss your fears." He sighed. If only everything in his life were that simple. He pulled out his headphones, unable to listen to another depressing note of the songs Anna had downloaded onto his iPod to get him "up to date" on his music. He quite enjoyed most of the music she put on it, not liking the Britney Spears and loud rap music but preferring the soft tone of Mumford and Sons and, although he wouldn't admit it, he liked the somewhat "girly" music of Lana Del Rey. He never told Anna this, of course, but he knew she caught him humming "Young and Beautiful" while he was doing the dishes one Saturday night.  
He dropped the iPod on his white dresser next to his bed and plopped back down on the mattress, staring aimlessly at the ceiling while the sunset crept in through his window. The warmth of the sun came along with it, making him feel sated in his small white room. He was still in his ridiculous looking suit that he had been wearing to go to a job interview, the fifth one this week, however he hadn't been bothered to change once he got home to an empty house and an angry voicemail from one of Anna's ex-boyfriends. His eyes were drifting shut when he suddenly heard a faint strum of a guitar and a quiet voice singing along. He opened his eyes and looked back, checking to see if he had turned his iPod off and the music wasn't coming from there. It was off, yet the music continued. The boy rose to his knees and slowly crawled along his bed to the open window on his left. He peered over the white wooden frame of the dusty window and looked outside. He now seen where the voice was coming from.  
"Slow ride," the voice sang, "take it easy." He didn't recognize the song, but the voice was beautiful nonetheless. He listened in more, trying not to be seen in the process. This was rather difficult because his bed was very low to the ground and he could hardly see over the window that he swore was placed way to high on the wall. He tiptoed on the edge of the mattress, to get a better look at the sitting figure playing the beaten up looking guitar on the roof across from his. He couldn't see a thing. He decided to use his high IQ to build a stack of pillows to stand on while he continued to listen to the voice.  
"I'm in the mood, the rhythm is right..." The voice continued, singing along to the according tune being played on the guitar. The boy continued to balance on the stack of pillows he had made to see over the window. He crossed his arms over the windowsill and perched his head on them. Suddenly the pillows slipped underneath his feet and he was left hanging on the windowsill after he let out a somewhat loud yelp of shock. He closed his eyes and tried to hide his head in his crossed arms, feeling completely embarrassed and scared that anyone heard him. Then he heard the music stop.  
"I can see you, y' know?" A gruff voice said, freezing the boy solid where he was hanging. He heard a loud laugh and raised his head to look. He could now clearly make out the boy sitting on the opposite roof, holding the beaten up guitar. He was struck with some sensation when he finally glanced at the face staring back at him. It was gorgeous. He was gorgeous. From what he could make out, at least. He blushed hard and felt the pink fill his cheeks. He tried to raise a hand to wave but fell off the ledge instead, plopping back on his mattress. An even louder laugh thundered outside. He sucked in a deep breath, ready to face his embarrassment outside the window. He pushed back his mattress, enough to fit a small stool he found in Anna's room and he stood on it, able to now climb out the window on to the roof outside his window. He sat on the ledge of his window at first, scared of breaking the shingles on the roof, which would cost a fortune he didn't have. The mysterious guitar player said nothing as the boy tested the roof then slowly made his way onto it and sat cross-legged on the middle of it.  
"You're not going to break the roof. Chill, dude." The guitar player chuckled and started playing a different melody on his guitar, only taking one second to look down and back up at the boy across from him. He smiled widely and continued playing, curious as to what the boy would say, if he would even speak at all even.  
"You play beautifully," the boy said finally, tensing up at the sound of his own voice. The guitar player stumbled on a few notes, hearing the husky voice finally speak, sending the oddest shivers down his spine.  
"Well, uh, thank you, stranger-"  
"M-my n-name is C-Castiel," the boy cleared his throat. "My name is Castiel Novak." The guitar player chuckled to himself quietly before looking up at the obviously shy and scared boy on the other roof.  
"M'name is Dean," he said after a few moments. "Dean Winchester."  
"Pleasure to meet you, Dean." Castiel smiled, looking away from Dean to hide his obviously red cheeks.  
"Would you like to hear more, Castiel?" Dean grinned, continuing the melody he was already playing.  
"Yes, I would like that," Castiel answered, finally looking up to meet Dean's eyes. It was hard to see the details of his face without his glasses, but he could tell this "Dean" character was pretty damn handsome.  
Dean laughed. "Okay, this one is called 'Angeles'." Dean started playing and Castiel slowly uncrossed his legs and started to get more comfortable on the roof as Dean played the song and sang along. Castiel listened intently, every word was sweet and perfect sounding. Castiel closed his eyes, leaning back on his now outstretched hands behind him that were holding him up.  
"What's a game of chance to you, to him it's one," Dean sang, looking up at Castiel, smiling as he seen him sway his head to the melody with his eyes closed. "Of real skill, so glad to meet you, Angeles." Castiel smiled.

~~~~~

That night, Castiel slept like a baby. Better than he had in a very long time. He stayed on the roof with his new friend until the moon was bright and the sky was turning the deepest blue. Of course, they didn't notice, too intrigued by each other. However, they rarely spoke that night, even when Dean took a break from singing or playing. They rather enjoyed each other's company. Castiel learned Dean had a brother, that he cared for very much, and he had a father he was always trying to please until he died a few years back. Dean took care of Sam by himself, gave him everything he wanted. Dean had told Castiel that Sam didn't seem happy these past weeks. Leaving school meant he would have to be at home more and he hated being bored. He frequently searched the Internet for new things to do, new information he could get at, working his brain all summer like he usually did. Castiel had asked Dean about where he went to school, assuming they were the same age, and he hesitated, pausing his strumming to simply say, "I'm a dropout." Castiel didn't push. He told Dean he had just graduated, he told him about Anna and her backpacking trip, and he told him he should come over for dinner when he had the chance, and to bring Sam along with him. Dean chuckled at that and told Castiel that "Sammy is a little devil, I don't know if you could handle him."  
At ten o'clock at night they parted ways. Dean had to make Sam dinner and it was getting cold, Castiel agreed. They couldn't exactly shake hands, but Dean gave an approving nod and Castiel gave a smile in return before practically jumping back in through his window. Before he fell asleep, he thought of him. Of Dean Winchester. The interesting boy playing the guitar on the roof, the boy with the voice of an angel and, Castiel admits, the face of one too. He seen him in his dreams. He hoped he would see him again. He hoped that he would take him up on that offer for dinner. For now, however, it was nice to finally have dreams instead of nightmares, a sort of Heaven instead of the repeating Hell.

~~~~~

Dean woke up to his alarm clock screaming at him with the sound of Bon Jovi. To his left, he looked out the door where he could see the door to Sam's room open just a sliver and a sleeping Sammy in his bed. To his right, he looked out the window to the bright sun that was peaking out of fluffy clouds and the sound of noisy birds filled the morning air. Dean worked at the auto shop down the road and was putting in extra hours to fill the rent he was almost drowning under. Sam had offered to get a job, but Dean told him he was too young, his exact words being "you're just a little squirt, Sammy", so now he worked from the early morning to the late evening. But he didn't mind. Anything for Sam.  
He got out of his bed and stretched. The clock beside him read 7:24, but he knew it was really 7am on the dot. He never got around to fixing that damn clock. He was too busy with other things to worry about himself and his problems. His room was always a mess, a huge comparison to Sammy's clean-as-a-whistle bedroom, but there was always food on the table. He put on his worn out Metallica shirt and shuffled on his leather jacket after picking up a pair of dark jeans from the floor and putting those on as well. At seven thirty, he had made breakfast for Sam, only taking an apple for himself, and he was on his way to the shop, getting into his black '67 Chevy Impala for the drive ahead. He drove around the round about above the complex garage and, before completely exiting the driveway, glanced at the house of the strange man he'd met last night. His mouth pulled at the side, giving way for a pleased smirk, before he made his left turn out and on to the road.

~~~~~

"Have you ever wondered if you're doing the right thing?" Castiel spoke, breaking the silence. The two boys were outside, again, on their roofs. Guitar in Dean's hand, Castiel's hands placed behind him holding his body upright. They hadn't spoken for a while, Dean had been playing some tune on his guitar, no singing. They drank in each other's company and Dean loved seeing Castiel smile as he listened to the soft strumming of the guitar.  
"What do you mean by that?" Dean replied, continuing to strum his guitar.  
"I mean, how do you know you're doing what you're supposed to be doing? Assuming that your life already has a plan, do you think you're sticking to the plan? To your destiny?" Castiel wasn't looking at Dean, he looked up at the pink and purple clouds that covered the sunset. Dean was puzzled by what Castiel was saying, it was a pretty heavy topic for two people who had only known each other for two days.  
"I think we make our own destiny. I think we do have a plan, but that doesn't mean we can't erase a paragraph or two and rewrite it." Castiel flashed a grin at Dean, obviously liking his answer. "Why do you ask?" Dean chuckled.  
"I was just thinking. I do that too much." Castiel smiled. Dean stopped playing and gave a loud laugh.  
"You remind me of someone." Dean said, grinning.  
"Who?" Castiel asked.  
"Me." Dean replied, starting up a new rhythm on his guitar. The pair didn't exchange many words after that. Only thoughtful glances and smiles. Dean continued to play and sing for Castiel, leaving with a blush-filled smile at ten o'clock like the previous night. Castiel fell asleep even quicker that night. He fell asleep with a smile plastered on his face, pink lips pulled to either side of his face almost reaching his ears. He dreamt of Dean, playing his guitar for him on his couch while Castiel fell asleep on the opposite couch. He dreamt of Dean's face, which he still didn't know the details of, however nothing compared to his voice. It sang beautifully in Castiel's dreams that night. Although, when he would wake up, he wouldn't remember anything except the warm feeling he felt when he opened his eyes that morning.


	2. Get Over Your Hill

"Sammy, c'mon. He's probably getting bored by now!" Dean yelled up the stairs. Dean had never been this jumpy before and of course little Sammy didn't know why he was so excited to go to a simple neighbour's house. The previous night, Castiel had offered dinner once again and this time Dean accepted, still somewhat hesitantly. It wasn't a date or anything, it was simply two people becoming acquainted as friends, Dean thought. Castiel had insisted that Dean bring Sam along and that he'd make whatever they wanted for dinner. Dean refused, claiming it was his house and he could cook whatever he wanted to. Castiel eventually pushed through to Dean and he recommended that he made spaghetti, which he said was Sam's favorite. They had only known each other for a week now and yet they were getting pretty close. They've never seen each other face to face, but they didn't have to because they were already having so much fun together. On the fourth night, Castiel asked Dean if he knew any songs by Coldplay, since he had grown to like them with Anna's iPod. Dean obviously hadn't updated his music collection for a while, all he knew was classic rock and a few songs he accidentally heard on the radio when Sam changed the station when he wasn't looking. Dean said no, and Castiel didn't push the conversation. He seemed to always do that. He didn't like making conflict or making other people feel obligated to please him. It made him utterly uncomfortable. However, the next evening when Dean came home in his impala, he sat on the roof, inviting Castiel out as well, and started to play a Coldplay song. Castiel was shocked. Something in his chest flopped around heatedly, making him feel like an ice cream cone melting on a hot day with no one there to slurp up the spills on the side. Dean tried his hardest not to make a mistake on the cords and sang when he was comfortable. Castiel had never heard a more perfect rendition of "Fix You" ever. He wondered what he did to deserve such an amazing friend. Could he call Dean that? His friend? They haven't even shook hands or seen each other's smile clearly enough. But they were friends. The physicality of it didn't mean anything compared to the emotional investment they now had in each other's life.   
"Now, Sammy, I want you to be on your best behavior. This is very important to me." Dean said when they were about to walk out the door. Castiel had told them not to dress up, it was casual anyways, just a sort of "meet and greet" if you could call it that. Dean wore his grey Henley that he rolled up to the elbows, it was summer after all, along with his favorite pair of dark washed denim jeans. He dressed Sam up in a maroon T-shirt and a brown cotton sweater. Dean was still wearing the necklace Sam had given to him for Christmas when they were younger. His little brother was everything he had now, even before his dad died that's how he felt. He did everything he could to make sure Sam was a happy and healthy little squirt. Sam pushed his feet into his, slightly too big, boots. He preferred them over flip flops even if was summer. It didn't get too hot in Kansas for the summer, so it was okay to wear boots.  
Sam ruffled his hair and looked up at Dean. "You don't have to treat me like a kid, Dean. I'm 13 now." Sam huffed.   
"You're still a little rugrat, Sammy. Enjoy it while it lasts." Dean chuckled. He locked the door behind them and headed down the steps and around the house to the street. They walked down the dirt path that separated the line of houses and on to the sidewalk until they reached the house of Castiel. Dean sucked in a huge breath, Sam unaware, and walked slower up to the door. He paused. He was frozen. Sam looked up at him, confused, almost to say "what the hell man, ring the doorbell". But Dean couldn't move. Instead, Sammy sighed and pressed firmly on the doorbell. It was loud enough inside that it shook Dean from his statue-like stance and he fiddled with the hem of his shirt. The door swung open almost immediately and there he was. Sam thought they were underdressed since Castiel was wearing what seemed to be a not-so-casual white dress shirt that went under a navy blue sweater vest. Dean looked up from his shirt to meet the face he hadn't seen so up close until today. The sun was just going down, so the light flooded in to the doorway of the house. That's when it hit Dean, smack dabbed on his forehead, all the way down to the knees of his bowlegs. His eyes. Castiel's eyes were the color of dark sapphires, an almost cobalt blue. They were happy, yet shy. Dean smiled back humbly, eyelashes flutter a bit until he never seemed to blink again, simply wide-eyed. Castiel was now frozen like Dean previously was. He couldn't wipe the stupid smile he had, pink lips stretching wide across his face. He found the same thing Dean saw. His eyes. Dean's eyes were gleaming emeralds encasing a black stone, and wow, they were gorgeous. The silence must have went on for a good minute because Sam pinched the back of Dean's leg to wake him up from the apparent trance he was stuck in.   
"Oh, um, this is my little brother, Sammy, Castiel, Castiel, Sam." Dean gestured between the two. Sam laughed and Castiel couldn't do anything but laugh with him.   
"Hello, Castiel. Weird name." Sam grinned, trying to be a sarcastic. Dean shot him a disapproving look. Sam just shrugged his shoulders. Castiel outstretched his hand to Sam, to which Sam immediately shook.   
"It's nice to meet you, finally, Sam." Castiel let go of Sam's hand and moved to let them both in. When Dean passed Castiel, they couldn't have been closer. They could smell each other's scent. Castiel smelled, Dean thought, of some sort of spice, possibly cinnamon. Dean smelled, Castiel thought, of leather and some sort of plant, or simply earth. It was almost mouth watering. Castiel stopped Dean, grabbing his arm, as Sam went ahead into the house.   
"It's nice to finally meet you, Dean." Castiel practically whispered. His grip was firm on Dean's forearm, but it wasn't tight, and he sort of melted into it, swallowing the lump in his throat as well.   
"You too, Cas." Dean finally said back. Castiel smiled shyly, Dean obviously oblivious to his words. He just gave Castiel a nickname. No one has ever called him Cas before. Not even Anna. Anna would give him a whole array of nicknames like "honey" or "cupcake", and sometimes "bro" which he didn't quite understand or like. Never Cas. And even she had called him Cas, there was no way it would have sounded the same way it did when Dean said it. It was smooth, yet gruff with the low tone of his voice. He decided he liked Dean's voice. Not as much as he liked his eyes, but it was a close second.   
"What? Is something wrong?" Dean said, breaking Castiel's thoughts. He didn't realize he was still holding on to Dean's arm and as soon as he did he let go.   
"You called me Cas," was the only thing that came out of Castiel's mouth.   
Dean tensed, he thought that was a bad thing. "Sorry, I didn't mean to-"  
"No, no. I like it." Cas smiled. He motioned Dean to the living room where Sam was already sitting down on the couch. "Make yourself comfortable, I just need to finish dinner." Cas swooped into the nearby kitchen, plating the spaghetti and meatballs as well as a side salad for Sam, (Dean had mentioned he liked salad), as well as himself. He yelled to the living room to ask Dean if he wanted some which got a polite "No thank you" back. Cas also had a surprise. He made dessert as well. After talking to Dean for several days, he drank everything in that he said and, as weird as he thought it was at first, wrote down all his likes and dislikes. Everything he said was fascinating to him. So for dessert, apple pie. Dean loved pie, Cas knew. Hopefully his homemade recipe would be up to par with his taste.   
In the living room, Dean was looking around at the two giant bookcases that encased the flat screen tv mounted on the wall. On one shelf, he found all kinds of books. He found poetry books, sci-fi novels and even some National Geographic type books. The books were ordered, Dean could tell. All the books by the same author were together, so Dean assumed it was alphabetical order. He placed the Hemingway book back where he had taken it from and looked over his shoulder at Sam who was sitting nicely on Castiel's couch, not saying a word. He moved to the other tall black bookcase and found it was filled with every video game there ever was, or so it seemed. Cas came out of the kitchen to see how his guests were doing, noticing Dean's curious look at his video game collection.   
"I'm not much of a fan, most of those are Anna's." Cas said, answering Dean's unspoken question. Dean nodded in appreciation. "If you want, you can play any game you like, Sam, while I finish getting everything ready. If that's alright with Dean," Castiel smiled, taking his eyes off Sam to gaze back at Dean.   
"Hey, it's your house," Dean replied, simply. Cas shuffled back into the kitchen and Sam got up to join Dean in front of the tall bookcase. There had to be about 700 games at least, if not a thousand. There were a wide variety of consoles as well, obviously the games were arranged by console. Sam picked up a game he'd heard about before, but never tried, called Assassin's Creed.   
By the time Dean had set up the game for Sam, Cas announced dinner was ready. Sam didn't mind, he was hungry more than anything. He set three plates out, along with utensils, around his dark, round wooden table. The boys all sat down in their respected seats and stared at the dinner in front of them. It was professional chef worthy. The spaghetti looked perfect. It had a center full of tomato sauce with meatballs placed around the outside circle of the plate and it was topped off with what appeared to be a freshly cut piece of mint leaf. Sam's mouth watered. He said a polite "thank you" to Castiel while Dean was still being memorized by the plate in front of him. Sam softly kicked Dean under the table, pulling him out of his trance yet again. Castiel was looking at Dean, looking for approval maybe, and Dean sat straight and cleared his throat.   
"Thanks, Cas. This looks great," he said weakly. Cas smiled and picked up his own fork to start eating. Dean thought it tasted amazing. Everything was perfect, he had no idea how he could have made such perfect pasta. It was obviously homemade. It didn't take long for them all to finish their meals.   
After the spaghetti, Sam went to play the game he picked out in the living room. Dean and Cas stayed in the dining area, attached to the living room. Cas offered Dean a beer, which he promptly accepted. They drank their beers and watched Sam play, however after a few minutes, Cas broke the silence.   
"Thanks for coming, Dean," Cas began. "I honestly didn't think you were going to come, I mean, we've only known each other for a short time, I could be a bad person for all you know."  
Dean chuckled. "You don't look like a bad person."  
"Well, I don't feel like one," Cas snorted, grinning widely. They exchanged stares before Cas turned to look back at Sam. Dean, however, did not move his eyes from Castiel's face.   
"Your brother is funny. You two seem very close, like you said. It's refreshing," Cas smiled. Dean's eyes stayed on Castiel's face, tracing ever inch of it, from the rough stubble on his jaw to his neck, wrapping over his prominent Adam's apple. His eyes trailed up passed his piercing blue eyes to his dark brown hair, ruffled in different directions, yet somewhat neat. Cas returned his glance to Dean when he didn't say anything back. Dean immediately looked for an answer, almost forgetting what he had said.   
"D-do you have any siblings," Dean fumbled with his words.   
Cas sighed. "Yes, unfortunately. I have two brothers and a sister. Luci is the girl, she was the apple of my dad's eye. Michael, the eldest and frankly my least favorite. And lastly, Gabriel. He's kind of the silly one. He's the only one I got along with." Cas took another sip of his beer, finishing it off. "Do you want another one?" Dean nodded his head blankly. Castiel stood up and patted Dean's shoulder before he walked back into the kitchen. He didn't think much of it, but Dean got a sudden rush of warmth throughout his body, like he was somehow a different person now. It was weird, Dean thought. When Cas came back with the beers, Sam said he wanted to play a different game since he was losing all of his online matches. Dean told him he was a sore loser and Sam glared at him, making a face.  
"Actually, I have something before you play the next game, Sam," Cas said excitedly. Cas ducked back into the kitchen and brought out the freshly made pie. Dean thought it smelt like the most delicious smelling apples and cinnamon, which is probably why Cas smelled like it when he walked in. Dean's mouth watered intensely. Cas sliced slowly into the pie, trying to make the most perfect isosceles triangles. He placed a piece on a plate and handed it to Sam first.   
"Thank you, Castiel," Sam said, taking the plate. Pie was Dean's favorite, but Sam quite enjoyed it.   
"You can call me Cas, Sam. It kind of sounds weird to say Castiel now," Cas chuckled. Dean sort of grinned secretly.   
"As long as you don't call me Sammy, we're cool," Sam snickered, rolling his eyes towards Dean. Dean ruffled Sam's hair, getting another roll of the eyes in return. Cas pulled another piece out and placed it in front of Dean.   
"This looks amazing, Cas." Dean smiled, showing the slightest bit of teeth before he brought a heaping spoonful of apple pie to his mouth. Cas watched him curiously. He had never seen Dean make such an vulnerable face. Dean seemed so guarded ever since he met him on the roof. But now he looked unguarded, as if Cas somehow made him feel comfortable in unfamiliar surroundings.   
After they finished their pie, basically less than five minutes passed, Dean changed the game for Sam and went back to sit with Cas. However, Cas stood up just as he was sitting down and turned to Dean.   
"Want to see something?" Cas said, hesitantly. Dean nodded and Cas led him to the basement door in the living room. Dean told Sam he'd be back up in a minute, Sam didn't even move his eyes from the screen, nodding slowly and short.   
Downstairs, Dean seen two large structures covered by white sheets and a plastic sheet was covering the ground, covered in what looked like a million colors of paint. Cas stepped in front of Dean and pulled one of the covers off, exposing a large wooden easel and buckets full of paint, brushes, and a bunch of tools for painting. Cas never told Dean he was a painter, so this was new for him. There was a large canvas on the easel.  
"I hope you don't think it's creepy." Cas said, timidly. On the canvas was the start to a painting of the view from Castiel's roof. A beautiful sunset was slowly being painted, the other houses were drawn in and in the center was an abstract figure, holding a guitar while sitting on the roof. It must have been Dean. It had to be.   
"No, that's awesome. I like it." Dean walked to wear Castiel was standing by the easel to get a better look. He didn't realize how close he was to Cas as he ran a hand over the painting, feeling every elevated area where the paint was thick. It really was a gorgeous painting. Castiel couldn't take his eyes off Dean. He watched him smooth his hands over the painting at least five times. They were less than a ruler stick apart. Castiel was so entranced by Dean he hadn't realized he stepped closer still. There was no space in between them and Dean still didn't see it. When Dean finally turned to face Cas, his breathe caught in his throat. Cas had some amazing eyes. There were entire galaxies in those eyes. Castiel, now looking into the forest green eyes in front of him, swallowed a lump in his throat. The men grew closer still, sucking in each other's breathe on every inhale. Dean didn't know what was happening, but he kind of liked it. He really liked it. Cas tipped his head, making their lips only a few centimeters apart. Suddenly, the door bell rang through the house.


	3. Boys Will Be Boys

 

"I should get that," Cas murmured reluctantly before racing up the stairs. Dean stood in aw for a moment, blinking rapidly, before he swallowed the lump in his throat and went up the stairs as well. Was he really just seconds away from kissing Cas? Yes. Did he like that he was about to kiss Cas? Yes. No. He doesn't know. When Dean walked into the living room, Castiel was already by the door, prepared to answer it, door bell ringing furiously. He looked through the peephole on the door to see who it was.  
"Oh no," Cas whispered.  
Dean heard him and walked over beside him. "What is it? Who's there?" he whispered back. Before Castiel could tell him, a voice from behind the door shouted.  
"C'mon Castiel, open the door for your loving brother," the voice said sarcastically. Cas let out a heavy sigh and gritted his teeth. They both backed up and Cas opened the door to reveal a shorter man with brown hair and a very annoying grin. He walked in and gave Castiel a tight bear hug, pinning Castiel's arms to the side with all the force.  
"Hello, Castiel," another voice said from outside. The first short man glided by Cas and a second man came in from the dark. He was taller, had dark hair like Castiel, and piercing green eyes, almost like Dean's, but something about his eyes were dark and sinister looking. Dean had no idea what to do. He froze in place as the two men walked passed him and Castiel and sat around the dining room table. The shorter man lifted his feet onto the table, earning another huff from Cas. Castiel moved to sit down with them, Dean following behind but not sitting down.  
"It's really not a good time, guys." Castiel said roughly.  
"Why? 'Cause you got company? Or is that your husband and your child that you've never told us about?" The shorter man gestured at Sam and then Dean. He laughed when he saw Castiel's annoyed face glaring back at him.  
"No, these are my friends, Gabriel," Castiel rolled his eyes and looked down to his lap. Gabriel. Dean remembered what Cas had said to him earlier about his brothers and sister. The taller man must have been Michael. Gabriel was definitely the silly one.  
"Well, why aren't we being introduced, hmm?" Gabriel raised his eyebrow when Cas didn't speak immediately. "Well?"  
"Gabriel, Michael," Cas gestured, "Dean, Sam." Gabriel walked over to the couch where Sam was now looking over the cushion to see what was going on. Gabriel ruffled they boy's hair.  
"Hi there, little Sammy!" Gabriel outstretched a hand for Sam to shake, but Sam didn't move.  
"Hey, only I get to call him that," Dean said hoarsely. The defensive tone he had obviously didn't phase Gabriel. He turned and smirked at Dean, returning to his place at the table without sitting down.  
"Look, Castiel, it's about mom. So tell your friends you'll see them later." Michael spoke up. Michael had a much more serious tone. It made Dean queasy for some reason. Castiel turned to look at Dean and then at Sam.  
"Yeah, we'll leave, Cas, it's okay." Dean tried a smile, weak as it was. He nodded to the door and Sam ran behind him to follow.  
"Wait," Cas said, "at least let me walk them home, Michael." Castiel shot Michael a pleading look. Michael nodded sharply and Gabriel let out a little chuckle. Cas walked back to the door and walked out with Dean and Sam.  
"You didn't have to walk us home, really, we're fine." Dean tried to make eye contact with him but Cas wouldn't look up. Sam tugged the side of Dean's jacket and ran ahead of them towards Dean’s house.  
“Cas, talk to me, buddy. What’s going on?” Dean put a hand on Castiel’s shoulder and it made him stop in his tracks and face Dean.  
“It really isn’t that big of a deal, Dean…at least I think it isn’t.” Cas sighed loud and roughly. “Once in a while they come along and tell me there’s something going on at home when really it’s just our parents being absolutely childish and foolish. I’m sick of it.” Cas kept his eye contact with Dean the entire time he spoke. Dean was flustered by the eye contact. He kept licking his lips where they were starting to become dry from the now cool summer air. His eyelids flutter vicariously and he couldn’t seem to settle on where to put his hands.  
“I’ll go over there for a weekend and it will turn into my brothers trying to get me to stay home and my parents arguing about me even being there. They’ll say something about how my “life style” will influence Luci to make bad decisions in her life and not focus on giving us grandchildren, which they consider the most success anyone can achieve. Honestly, all they want is grandchildren so they can have even more control over us.” Cas finally let go of the grip he had on Dean’s eyes and stared forward, starting to walk again. Dean quickly caught up to him and pushed his hands deep into his pockets, squishing his knuckles to the bottom of the fabric in them. He grazed his lips one last time with his tongue and looked beside him to watch Castiel’s face as they walked alongside each other.  
“I guess when they’re gone we can do this again, Dean,” Cas spoke quietly now. “I had fun with you two, even if it was…interrupted.” Cas quirked a small smile that made Dean feel a rush of warmth that collided with the coldness outside.  
“Fun. Yeah. Definitely,” Dean huffed out, pleased with Cas finally smiling after the ordeal in the quaint living room. Hesitantly, Dean took his hands out of his pockets and slipped his palm and fingers into the dip of Castiel’s hand and he squeeze lightly. Cas was trying to walk properly but he seem to almost trip and fall flat on his face when he felt the heat that was surrounding him and his new friend beside him. He chuckled quietly and a smile stuck to his face, Dean doing the same as soon as he caught a glimpse of Cas’s face.  
“Do you always meet people on roofs and invite them to dinner?” Dean laughed.  
“Nope, I would never do that, actually.” Cas snorted.  
“You made an exception for me.”  
“You’re different.”

~~~~~  
  
As it turns out, there was something seriously wrong with Castiel’s parents. For the first time in a long time, if ever, they wanted their Castiel back. He assumed it was just another scheme to try and make him like women, which never ever worked. The only way he could be sure was to go all the way to Colorado which would be difficult since Castiel didn’t drive and had no idea how to get there by taking the bus. He didn’t know what he was going to do, but he had to figure out fast.  
It was Saturday now and Castiel had invited the two brothers over again to play video games. Well, Cas knew Sam would play video games and they would talk and drink all night. He liked it like that. It was simple. Most of his relationships with people were overly serious and didn’t work as well as he want them to. With the exception of Anna, he only had another friend. Hester was an effervescent, lengthy blonde that always overshadowed Castiel in High School. She would squish her thin brown eyebrows together and tell Castiel he was doing something wrong every five minutes. Obviously she was "perfect", or so she thought, and it bothered Cas that she never got backlash for being such a rude and ignorant girl. Hester and him hadn't spoken since summer started, which was amazing in Castiel's eyes because she would never stop talking if she were here. Hester always tried to set Cas up with various women and he would always decline, very politely of course. Hester had no idea Cas liked men. She may have been an intelligent girl, but she was also pretty stupid.  
Castiel missed Anna. She had only been gone for two weeks and Cas was already starting to feel lonely in the now bigger townhouse. Her stuff was still laying around, occupying even the spare bedrooms. They wanted a roommate, to pay for some of the bills, but they couldn't seem to find anyone they liked or trusted. One girl did seem to fit the bill one time. Meg was polite, intelligent, and seemed nice on the outside. Very soon she paraded around the house naked when Anna was gone and only Castiel was home. He would see her walk past his door while he was reading. One day while she was walking around, she took it a step further and walked into Castiel's room.  
"Hello, Clarence," Meg would say seductively.  
Cas would raise an eyebrow and say sternly, "My name isn't Clarence and I still don't understand why you call me that."  
Meg would sigh, "Would it kill you to read a book or watch a movie?"  
Then she would walk over to Cas and try to drape herself on him, try kissing him while holding his arms down after throwing away his book. He would protest and she would get off him, frustrated look on her face. When this incident occurred, Meg let out a loud grunt and went to pack her bags, yelling at Castiel that he's a fag.  
"Am I not correct? You're gay right? Cause no man I've known has ever refused me!" Meg would yell. Castiel would tell her goodbye in a calm voice and close his bedroom door. He went back to reading his book and heard Meg getting angry and storming out of the house. Anna came home and after Castiel described what had happened, she gave him a hug and they went out for dinner. Anna was like a sister to him. She was and still is the single person that supports him completely.  
"Do you want another beer, dude?" Dean's husky voice broke through Cas's stale thoughts and he almost jumped at the sound. He almost forgot that he had the brothers over for another, hopefully better, dinner.  
"Yeah, sorry," Cas fumbled with his words. Dean raked his eyes over Cas before deciding to sit back down and question.  
"Alright," he huffed, "talk to me." Cas stared at Dean like a deer in the headlights for a long minute. When the eye contact seemed too prolonged for him, Dean got up and turned to the kitchen for another beer. Cas sighed and got up to follow Dean into the kitchen. When Dean spun around he was met with close hooded blue eyes that looked apologetic and shy.  
"Dean, I'm sorry," Cas said, Dean feeling his breath hot on his face. "No one's ever really cared before, so I'm not used to it." Cas lowered his head, looking at a stray stitch in Dean's t-shirt collar.  
"I care. Tell me what's going on in that head, Cas," Dean furrowed his brow and dipped his head down to catch Cas's eyes back to his and brought his head up.  
"I believe you, Dean," Cas sighed, "it's nothing really. My mom wants me to come back home for a while... I'm not sure of her true intentions but they can't be good, like always. She lives all the way in Colorado, how does she expect me to get there? Fly?" Cas side stepped and grabbed a glass from the cupboard above Dean. He filled it with some tap water and downed the glass. Dean let out his breath that he had no idea he was holding since Cas had been so close to him. His mind was fuzzy and he was seeing stars.  
"I can take you," Dean blurted out. "I mean, Sammy loves road trips and he's always cooped up in that house or at the library. Kid is a nerd." Dean chuckled nervously. Cas was taken back by Dean's offer. He felt like Dean was no longer such a stranger to him, even after 2 weeks, he felt he knew him entirely. He was familiar. Dean made him comfortable somehow, like no one else had.  
"I...would very much appreciate that. Thank you so much," Cas smiled wholeheartedly. Cas placed a thankful hand on Dean's shoulder. It sent the same waves of content that it had the first time Cas did it that few days ago. It was familiar to him, a sense of depth that had him confused and yet very happy.

~~~~~

"I look ridiculous," Cas mumbled, looking at the over growing stubble around his chin and neck. After three weeks of Anna being gone, Cas looked like he had grown a baby kitten on his face. Anna always shaved his beard for him, something about him not being allowed to mess up his face with a sharp razor. Cas never had to do it for himself, so he was now lost. When Anna was gone for more than a week, he wouldn't bother with it and when she got back she would sigh and take him to the bathroom to shave his ridiculous looking beard. How he grew that goddamn hair so fast, no one would ever know. But now Anna was going to be gone for more than a month and his beard will surely reach Santa level by then.  
The door bell interrupted his thoughts. When he answered it, he was faced by the taller man with flourishing green eyes. He received a rather strange look followed by a ridiculously loud and deep laugh.  
"Well," Dean laughed, "someone definitely needs a shave." Dean laughed more before calming down and reaching to Cas's face and thumbing over his overgrown stubble. "Nice peach fuzz, Cas."  
Cas rolled his eyes. "Right. What's going on Dean, it's Tuesday, we're not leaving until Thursday." Cas moved to let Dean in, and they both sat down at the table.  
"Sam went to the library, apparently there's some chick that always goes there that he's been trying to befriend," Dean said. He looked back at Cas and chuckled. "Seriously, Cas, that beard is ridiculous."  
"That's what I said!" Cas huffed. "But Anna always shaves it for me so I don't know how and she also hid the supplies from me, I don't even know..." Cas trailed off, distracted by Dean's obscene giggling at him.  
"That's..." Dean caught his breath from laughing, "that's really funny, Cas. Would you like me to do it for you?" Dean chuckled.  
"Yes, please, thank you," Cas smiled widely.  
Dean stopped laughing. "Oh, I was joking."  
"Oh, then it's okay don't wor-"  
"No, I'll do it. But I don't use one of those fancy razors. I can't use a straight razor. I hope you're okay with that," Dean said, breath uneven. What was he getting himself into?  
"That'd be perfectly fine. Anything to get rid of this beard before my mom starts calling me a hobo," Cas laughed. Dean laughed with him.  
They left the house almost immediately, Cas had to get a different change of clothes from his pajamas. He exchanged them for an old burgundy t-shirt that had the quote "Out with the complicated, in with the meaningful" on the back. He made the shirt himself when Anna took him to her screen printing class to try something new. She said the shirt was boring and he should have made a design, but he quite liked the color and the quote that he thought of. They walked up the street and up to Dean's doorstep, where Dean promptly opened the door and walked in. Cas followed and took in his new surroundings. Although being almost identical to Cas's house on the outside, Dean's interior was much, much different. Dean's house was organized chaos with books sitting in every corner of the walls, no bookcase to be found, a small black round table in the dining area that was met with a black leather couch in front of an old looking television set. Next to the set, Cas spotted an old fashioned record player, along with various records strewn about the floor in front of it. Cas's eyes were filled with curiosity and amazement at the warmth of the house that was all the same as his on the outside.  
"Sorry about this mess," Dean cleared his throat, "I'm not really home enough to fix it up, and Sam is only obligated to clean his room, so he says." Dean weakly chuckled.  
"I like it. It's lived in." Cas smiled.  
"If you want, you could put on some music while I fill up a bucket and get what we need ready upstairs."  
"Sure," Cas nodded. Dean ran upstairs while Cas walked to the record player and looked through the ones spaced out on the floor. He sifted through records like Kansas, Pink Floyd, Blue Oyster Cult, and Led Zeppelin. He couldn't seem to find anything he might like, until he stumbled upon a record with a familiar name. Chris Isaak. He couldn't remember why the name was familiar, maybe Anna played a song by him before, but he popped in the record anyways. After putting the needle on the record, he ran upstairs to meet Dean, who he came face to face with as the music started.  
"Wicked Game? Um, that's an interesting choice." Dean swallowed the lump in his throat. Did Cas know what song was playing? Probably not. Dean tried to push it far from his mind. Cas probably just didn't like the classic rock records he found.  
"I hope you don't mind, Dean."  
"Well, he's no Led Zeppelin," Dean chuckled. "But okay. If you're happy, I'm happy."  
Cas smiled and moved passed Dean into the bathroom where the supplies was set up. He sat on the edge of the tub as Dean pulled a chair in front of him along with a bucket of water.

_It's strange what desire will make foolish people do_

The music spilled through the house and into the bathroom, where Dean had started to massage shaving cream onto Cas's face. It was oddly intimate, Dean thought. Even without the music playing, that seemed rather sappy to Dean, it seemed as though time was slowed down and it was only Dean and Cas left on the planet.

_I never dreamed that I'd meet somebody like you_

Dean looked up into Cas's eyes which were planted firmly on Dean's eyes. A dark, forestry green met with the blazing oceanic blue. Dean swallowed back another lump in his throat and started to shave Cas's neck, carefully sweeping over his Adam's apple. Cas kept his eyes pinned to Dean's face as he tilted his head up.

_No, I don't want to fall in love (this world is only going to break your heart)_

Dean tilted Cas's head down again to start shaving his chin. He almost gasped at the reconnection of dark blue eyes to his own. He washed the razor and started shaving his chin, realizing suddenly that Cas had put his hand on Dean's knee sometime while this process was occurring. He inhaled and washed off his razor.

_What a wicked game to play, to make me feel this way  
What a wicked thing to do, to let me dream of you_

Dean couldn't shake the racing of his heart as he heard the music flow through the house. Cas didn't make a sound, he just sat there quietly and watched as Dean scrapped the hair off the left side of his face, slowly moving to the right. Dean inhaled sharply.

_And I want to fall in love (this world is only going to break your heart)_

Dean finished the right side of Cas's face and washed off the remaining hair in the bucket. He picked up the towel beside Cas, that he had previously damped, and raised it to his face to sooth the fading reddening of Cas's face. Cas still stared thoughtfully at Dean.

_The world is on fire and no one can save me but you_

Dean put down the towel and looked back up to Cas. He inhaled again, feeling Cas take his hand off his knee and cup his face with that hand.

_Strange what desire will make foolish people do_

Cas smiled. "Dean Winchester. Some luck."

_I never dreamed that is love somebody like you_

"Dumb luck," Dean whispered as he shifted forward, pressing his and Cas's lips together, strong and passionately.

_No, I want to fall in love... With you_


	4. Highway to Hell

It was Thursday now, the day that Cas, Dean, and Sam were to set off for their road trip to Colorado to see Castiel's parents. However, there was one problem. Dean decided not to tell Sam about the trip until Thursday morning when he rolled him out of bed with force and, as it so happens, Sam wasn't very happy with his proposition.  
"Rise and shine, Sammy. Be ready and packed in thirty minutes?" Dean shouted from his spot in the kitchen where he was making a fat stack of blueberry pancakes. Sam's favorite. Sam made his way downstairs, following the unsuspecting smell of blueberry pancakes. Dean never made him this fancy of a breakfast on a Thursday. He was up to something.  
"What is it? Pack for what?" Sam looked tired and confused. His summer was supposed to be a leisurely study period that he would use to get ahead of his class for next year. Now, it appears to Sam, that Dean has something sneaky planned for them. Probably wasn't anything too sappy. Dean didn't do sappy.  
"Uh... right, I forgot to tell you. We're going to Colorado for a couple of days with Cas. He has family things and he can't drive. So go get pac-"  
"Dean," Sam interrupted, "you didn't even ask me if I wanted to go."  
"You don't have a choice, Sammy. I can't leave you here alone." Dean quirked an eyebrow. Sammy usually loved going on road trips with his brother. It was relaxing. And if they went at night, they would sit on the roof of the car and look at the stars in the sky by the countryside. So what was up with the kid now?  
"I can stay with Bobby, he won't mind, Dean," Sam was almost pleading now. There was something this kid wasn't telling Dean. His suspiciousness didn't diminish.  
"Spit it out, Sammy. Why do you wanna stay?" Dean folded his arms across his chest and looked down at Sam.  
"It's just... Dean, I told you about Jess, right? The girl at the library?" Sam played with his fingers, not keeping eye contact with Dean. Dean gave a husky laugh. He silenced and let Sam continue. "Well, I asked her if she wanted to get ice cream tomorrow... so..." Sam coughed.  
"I get it, Sammy. It's no problem. I thought you were ragging on my reckless driving," Dean laughed, "...But if that's the reason you wanna stay, no problem. I guess I'll see you Saturday."  
Sam smiled and attempted to hug Dean, but Dean didn't oblige and Sam ended up squeezing Dean's arms to his sides. "Thank you so much, Dean." Dean scoffed. "Oh," Sam pulled back, "and have fun with your boyfriend." Sam winked at him.  
"Shut up," Dean's cheeks burned. "He's not my boyfriend."  
"Yet." Sam smiled then ran for his life because Dean was chasing him, about to give him the wrestle of his life.  
Dean liked Cas. He really, really liked him. He was different. There was something oddly attracting, oddly celestial about him. He was purely angelic.

~~~~~

It was noon and Cas packed the last of his clothes and sat on his suitcase to flatten it down since it was overflowing. He never had much in his suitcase, but then again, his suitcase wasn't a giant camping bag. It was merely backpack size. He had various dress shirts and some of his best sweater vests along with some ties. Everything was ready. Except for maybe Castiel. He was not prepared to talk to his family again after such a long time. He knew they would pull him in for dinner, fatten him up, and then get out the information they needed. However, Cas was hopeful. People change. Maybe it would be different this time.  
He mapped out their journey, from Lawrence, Kansas to Fort Collins, Colorado. He estimated that their trip would take at least 8 hours, which meant they would have to spend the night at a motel possibly. Cas got worried that he was forgetting something when he locked his door and he paused for a moment. He scratched his head, knowing he didn’t forget anything at all and that he was just being paranoid about the trip. He was asking himself a million questions in his head. Would Sam be bored driving such a long distance? Where would they spend the night? What would they talk about the whole way there? What would they do once they got to his parent’s house? He had to push these thoughts out of his head so that he could concentrate on walking properly and not tripping because he’s not paying attention to where he was going. It was sunny outside today. The weather man said it would rain later, but there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, Cas thought. He continued to walk down the dirt path that separated his house and Dean’s, breathing in the mid-July air. He got up to the steps of Dean’s place and knocked on the door. No sound came from inside. Cas knocked again, confused.  
“Dean? Sam?” He yelled, slightly nervous. Suddenly, the door opened and stood in the doorway was a disheveled Dean. His hair was a mess, his face was flushed, and he was panting. However, Dean was smiling wide.  
“Heya, Cas. Just wrestling… Not dying,” Dean laughed loud. Cas smirked and followed Dean inside. Cas looked around while Dean went to the kitchen for a glass of water. He saw that there was only one bag by the door that was packed.  
“You and Sam fit all your stuff in one bag?” Cas shouted to Dean.  
Dean came out of the kitchen, color now returning to his face. “Actually, no,” Dean scratched his head, nervously. “I was going to tell you… Sam isn’t coming with us anymore,” Dean looked down.  
“Oh? Something happened?” Cas said, seemingly unaffected by whatever nervousness Dean was feeling.  
“No, he’s fine. He just has a date with that chick that I told you about at the library. Sounds like his life depends on it. ‘Told him he could stay at Bobby’s house until we get back. Are you okay with that? If Sammy doesn’t come?” Dean gulped.  
“Yes, that is quite alright. I was actually worried that Sam would get bored with us anyways,” Cas smiled. He was good at hiding what he was feeling. He was even more nervous now that it was only going to be him and Dean going on the road trip.  
They packed their bags into the impala’s trunk and got into the car. The car smelt exactly like Dean, Cas thought. The sweet smell of spice, earth, and leather. Cas could get used to that smell. They headed off and Cas pulled out his map to show Dean where they would be going. They didn’t talk much for a while, Dean had turned on a classic rock station and turned the volume down low, something he didn’t do with Sam because he claimed it was his car and he could listen to Metallica at full blast if he so pleased. Cas pulled out a book of Sudoku that he planned to finish during the car ride since he knew there would be a lot of down time.  
“What’s that? Sudoku?” Dean finally said.  
“Yeah, I’ve become quite fond of it lately. It’s calming.”  
“Are you not calm right now?” Dean laughed. They came to a stop at a red light.  
Cas blushed. “Yes, I’m very calm. If I got any calmer I’d be pronounced dead.” Cas let his head fall back on the head rest as if he was dead.  
Dean laughed, then got fake serious. “Oh no, let me call 9-11!” He put his phone to his ear. “Hello, 9-11? Yes, my friend Castiel Novak has just passed away in my car. His heart? Chest compressions? Okay, yes, I’ll give him mouth to mouth,” Dean smirked at Cas. Cas jolted his head up and seen Dean’s devious smirk. They both laughed and the light turned green, allowing them to continue their journey. They never mentioned what Dean had implied. Heck, they still hadn’t talked about what happened on Tuesday after Cas was clean shaven. Dean simply said goodbye to Cas like nothing had ever happened between them. Cas had dreamt about kissing him that night as well as the next.  
“So, you wanna play a game?” Dean said, breaking the silence.  
“Oh no, now you’re going to kill me?” Cas mocked.  
“No,” Dean chuckled, “I didn’t mean in the creepy Saw way.”  
Cas laughed. “Alright, what game would you like to play?”  
“How about ‘Never Have I Ever’” Dean smirked.  
Cas tilted his head and furrowed his brows. “I’ve never played that before. How do you play?”  
Dean cleared his throat, “Well, you say a statement like ‘Never have I ever…whatever’ and if the person has done it, they put a finger down. The one that is left with fingers still up, wins.”  
Cas smiled. “This game sounds interesting. Sure, lets play.” Cas held up his hands, stretching out all his fingers. “I’ll use my hands to keep points so we don’t get into an accident.”  
“Okay,” Dean laughed. “Never have I ever flown in a plane,” Dean said, peering at Cas to see him put a finger down, which he did.  
“Oh wow, really?” Cas was shocked.  
“Yeah, I’m terrified of planes. Too many people die from crashes.”  
“More people die from car accidents though.” Cas raised his eyebrow, matter-of-factly.  
“Shut up. It’s your turn,” Dean smirked.  
“Never have I ever been in an impala before today,” Cas grinned.  
Dean nodded to put a finger down and scoffed. “That’s a personal attack, geez.”  
Cas chuckled, “I couldn’t think of anything, sorry. Your turn.”  
“Never have I ever worn a suit.”  
“Wait, what? How is that possible? Don’t you have a job?” Cas said, putting a finger down.  
“Yeah, but I’m a mechanic, I never had to wear a suit to an interview since I knew Bobby and it was his place.”  
Cas huffed. “I’m going to lose this, I can feel it.” Dean laughed. “Alright. Never have I ever… smoked weed? I don’t know.”  
Dean shook his head.  
“You never have? At all?” Cas tried to make eye contact with him, trying to see if he was lying.  
Dean went into a defensive state. “No, geez, what kind of person do you think I am?” He gritted out, not realizing how angrily he said it.  
“Sorry, Dean, I didn’t mean it like that. I just known a lot of people who do.” Cas felt small at that point, he was caving in on himself, feeling stupid for even suggesting such a thing.  
Dean snapped back to reality and realized that he might have hurt Cas. “No, it’s okay, I shouldn’t have taken it to heart, you’re right.” They kept driving while Blind Faith started to play on the radio and Dean cleared his throat.  
“Never have I ever kissed someone on the first date,” Dean smirked. Cas blushed for a second, then regained his focus. He put a finger down. “Wow, really? You move quickly, huh?” Dean teased.  
“Actually, she asked me to kiss her,” Cas said shyly. Dean felt his heart drop in his chest. Cas has kissed a girl before? Does this mean he has kissed other guys before? Before he could question further, Cas continued. “My parents set us up. They wanted me to date early so that I knew what it felt like. Charlie, that was her name, very pretty, had red hair and was very bubbly. We went out for dinner and she told me all about herself. Her parents wanted to set her up with a nice boy like me so that she would start acting more girly and stop playing so much video games. At the end of the night, I walked her back to her place and before she went in she turned back to me and said ‘Uh oh’ and she eyed next to the window and from the corner of my eye I could see her parents and my parents looking out the window so she grabbed me and whispered ‘Kiss me so they’ll believe it’ and I needed them to believe it too so I kissed her. That was my first kiss, actually.”  
Dean listened to Cas’s intriguing story very closely. “So did you guys date again?”  
“Yes, we went on several dates, to convince our parents. However, her parents got angry because I invited her over to play video games one day and they saw through what we were doing and didn’t let us speak to each other again.”  
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Dean interjected.  
“I heard that she got away from her family though, like I did,” Cas smiled, turning to face Dean. Dean gave a small grin and turned back to the road.  
“Alright, so looks like you got two fingers left and I still have four,” Dean said.  
Cas disregarded his cockiness, “My turn. Never have I ever been in a car accident.”  
Dean shook his head once again. “I’m a grade A driver, there’s no way I’d get into an accident and hurt my baby.” Cas sighed loudly. “Oh Cas, you’re terrible at this game.”  
“Yeah, yeah, alright. It’s your turn, you big dope.” Cas puffed, rolling his eyes sarcastically.  
Dean ruffled his hand in Cas’s hair. “You’re acting like little Sammy now, you big baby.” Cas was still looking away, which was probably a good thing because he was redder than a tomato he was blushing so hard. They continued their game and eventually Cas lost over “Never have I ever finished a jaw breaker” which came with a frantic story of Cas trying to fit a fist sized jaw breaker into his mouth when he was five and a laughing fit from Dean didn’t help the burn of defeat either.  
Hours had passed and the sun was setting quickly. It was taking them longer to get there than Cas anticipated since they had taken a wrong turn due to Dean being distracted. They had played several games and Dean helped Cas finish some crossword puzzles in his book. They were somewhere on Interstate 70, five hours away from Lawrence and three hours away from their destination, Fort Collins. Castiel was already starting to get sleepy, seeing as he didn’t get much sleep the night before, being incredibly nervous and all.  
“So I guess we should pull off here and find a motel?” Dean said, interrupting Castiel’s thoughts. Cas looked puzzled. “You just yawned pretty hardcore, Cas.”  
“Oh yeah, okay.” He never even noticed he had yawned until Dean said that. They pulled off the interstate and found Red Motel quickly and signed in. Cas paid for the room and the dinner they ordered from a pizza shop close by since Dean only had brought money for gas. After they went to eat their pizza, they went back to their motel room and Dean flopped on his bed. Cas threw his shoes off and sat down on the side of his bed. Then he looked down at what his stupidity had done. He had spilt Mountain Dew all over his pants while they were at the pizza place.  
“Well, I got to take a shower,” Cas sighed.  
Dean laughed. “Yeah, and put on some clean pants while you’re at it.” Cas glared at Dean and squinted his eyes. Dean just kept chuckling and laughing at Cas’s frustration. However, Cas’s expression changed when he went to go in his suitcase.  
“Oh no,” Cas whispered.  
Dean stopped laughing. “What’s wrong?”  
“I knew I forgot something.” Cas started breathing heavily.  
“What did you forget?” Dean raised an eyebrow.  
“I… I forgot underwear.”


End file.
